LINGERING hopes for the safety of two North-East trawlermen lost in the North Sea appeared to be at an end last night as search teams confirmed they had located a wreck on the seabed.

Search teams using specialist sonar equipment last night said they had found a submerged vessel five miles from the mouth of the Tyne - and were almost certain it was the wreck of the Jan Denise II.

The 36ft, steel-hulled trawler went missing on Wednesday afternoon as she sailed back to North Shields, prompting one of the biggest sea and inshore searches to be carried out in the region for many years.

Family and friends have been clinging to the hope that father-of-three Bobby Temple, 32, and his 26-year-old brother Brian, both of Fencehouses, near Chester-le-Street County Durham, could have escaped the stricken boat in an onboard liferaft.

But, almost 36 hours after the last contact with the stricken vessel, by last night there had still been no sign of the experienced trawlermen.

As hope faded for the brothers, who were originally from Seaham, three officers from Humberside Police were flown up to the Tyne with sonar equipment to carry out a detailed search of the area where the Jan Denise II was last seen, battling back to port in rough seas.

Last night, a spokeswoman at Humberside police confirmed that the three experts had located a wreckage on the seabed.

Photographs of the wreckage have been taken but, because of the murky conditions, it has been decided to send down a diver to confirm suspicions that it is the Jan Denise II.

"Fresh diesel rising to the surface clearly indicates that it is a new wreck and we are 99 per cent certain that it is the wreckage of the missing vessel," said the spokeswoman.

"But, until we can send down a diver to confirm our fears, we cannot be 100 per cent certain."

The men's families took it in turns yesterday to maintain a quayside vigil waiting for news, while more than 300 people took part in the search and rescue operation.

As news of the discovery of the wreckage began to emerge, the men's families including Bobby's wife, Christine, who last heard from her husband at 11am on Wednesday in a text message saying they were returning to port, remained in their homes.

Bobby and Christine have three children Dale, 13, Lewis, eight, and Shannon, 18 months.